Alternating Current
by The Trumpet's Call Sounds
Summary: The story of a boy who would be a huntsman, if he could only overcome his doubt. They say lightning never strikes the same place twice, but when it does, is it luck or misfortune?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! This is my first story in this fandom. I also posted it on Archive Of Our Own, but I figured that I should post it here as well.**

The alarm buzzed, but I was already awake. From my window I could see the sky, the shattered moon shining faintly above. I moved to get ready, quickly, silently. If my parents found out I was doing this… My room was a mess, the desk covered in spare servos and wiring, dirty clothes strewn across the floor. My bag was at the foot of my bed, as I had prepared it the night before.

I grabbed the sword from under the bed. It was sheathed, but when I gripped the handle I could feel the flow of electricity, power flowing through the mechanisms I designed. I cracked open the window. Sword, check. Bag, check. I was good to go. My room was on the second floor, and my gut clenched as I looked down. If I did fall my aura would take the blow, but wouldn't muffle the sound. I grabbed a rope from my bag, securing it to the knob on my closet door. I took a deep breath, then began to descend.

I moved with confidence through the town, the hood on my jacket down. It looked less suspicious that way, I figured. The streets were mostly empty, only a few others out at this hour. The town wasn't that large, but it was large enough to survive the grimm attacks that came hand in hand with distance from the city.

I made it to the walls, old wooden structures that mostly served as a lookout post. Standing atop them, right above the exit, was a man in a light gray tunic. My mentor and the town's greatest huntsman, Slade. He glanced down at me and gave a thin smile, his sharp features and crooked nose illuminated by a lamp that hung from his belt. "Your parents know you're out tonight?" he asked, his deep voice hushed.

I shook my head. "Not at all."

Slade's grin widened. "Good. You've finished your sword, I take it? Then I'll let you fight alone tonight, but I'll be watching." He didn't give me a chance confirm about my weapon. I had long suspected that he had a way of observing me without my knowledge, but I had never asked out of respect.

I glanced up at him again. He gave no indication of providing direction, so I set out into the fields, fingers loosely curled around the hilt of my sword. The long grass brushed against the legs of my jeans, rustling as I moved.

It didn't take long to find a grimm. A seemingly lone beowulf, silhouetted against the starry sky as it stood on its hind legs. I pressed the pommel of my sword with my thumb. I had remembered to load it, thankfully. The beowulf had spotted me. It howled, likely alerting an entire pack to my presence. It dropped to all fours, and began to run at me, mouth open.

My sword sang as I slipped it from the sheath, pointing it tip first at the charging grimm. I focused on the electricity flowing through the circuits inside the blade, diverting the flow of electrons with a thought. The blade split in half along an invisible seam, revealing the encased barrel. I fired one round, the recoil blowing me back an entire foot. If not for my aura it would have broken my arm, I had to figure out a way around that. The grimm stopped in its tracks as the bullet pierced an eye, dissolving into black mist as it began to slump over.

I reverted the flow of energy, and the blades retracted back to their resting position. I took up a defensive stance, my sword gripped with one hand, my weight resting on the balls of my feet. The rest of the pack had arrived.

The moved en mass, a rolling wave of black, red, and white bone threatening to engulf me. I thought back to Slade's teachings. A weapon is not to a toy. It is a tool to be mastered, and if you do it will never fail you when you need it. I stepped to the side as my blade bit down, it's razor edge splitting the skull-like mask of the lead grimm, cutting through the flesh beneath.

A warrior's weapon is nothing without a way to hold it, one must always watch their hands. I flicked my blade out with my left, cutting another's mouth into a bloody grin. I reached out with my right, the metal plating of my glove conducting an electric shock to the grimm I grabbed. I leapt sideways to dodge another charging beowulf, lopping off it's head with an upward strike. I struck again and again, my blade trailing black smoke from slain grimm.

Sometimes you can't avoid everything, but learn to roll with the punches. A tree that cannot bend will break in a light storm, but one that can will weather a hurricane. A grimm took a heavy swipe at me from behind, catching me off guard. My aura protected me from injury, but that didn't stop it from hurting. I gritted my teeth, and used the momentum from the blow to propel myself into a roll, slicing open the stomach of another beowulf in passing. Only the one who had struck me remained, and I turned to face it. It was much larger than any of the others, and had spikes of bone along its body. I was facing an alpha, I realized, as it began to charge.

I had no clue if what I was about to do would actually work. My blade split open again, and I activated another servo before firing straight. There was a flash of purple as I shot upwards, the alpha barreling past where I had been moments before. In the air I fired two shots at the alpha, which only seemed to make it angrier. That was the entire clip. As I began to fall, I ejected the cylindrical clip from the pommel of the sword, pulling one marked yellow out of my bag and jamming it in. I hit the ground, flattening the grass around me. The alpha turned towards me and roared, a sound of pure hatred.

It charged again, thirty feet away, twenty, ten. I sidestepped, jamming my sword into it's side as it passed. I was pulled forward with it, my sword thoroughly stuck. It whipped around, and I lost my grip on the handle. I fell to the ground, and it pounced on me, the strike throwing me backwards. I saw the crackle of blue-white energy around me as I struggled to my feet. My aura had given out.

The massive Grim had not let up. It was stalking towards me, my sword gleaming in the moonlight, contrasted with the matte black fur. It tried to pounce at me again. I jumped over the strike, kicking it in the head as it went under me. I slipped on its fur as I landed, grabbing my sword as I fell. This time, I didn't waste my chance. I opened up the blades, widening the puncture in the beast's side. I fired all four shots into the wound, and at the same time unleashed a dust-charged electric blast. There was a crack of thunder and my vision went white.

The blowback threw me several yards away, my sword still in hand. I could see the grass through the smouldering hole in the grimm's side, it's monstrous form slow to dissolve. I turned towards the town. I hadn't realized just how close the fight had been. I could just barely make out the silhouette of Slade against the light of his lantern.

I sheathed my sword, and began to make my way back towards town, adrenaline still pumping through my veins. Was it my eyes fooling me or were there a lot of lights on in the city. The moon was still up, I hadn't been out that long.

As I got closer, I could see that there were in fact lights on in the city. I heard Slade call out to me from above. "Good job kid! I think that weapon of yours might be a bit on the loud side, though." My eyes widened, and my heart dropped. I approached the gate, my eyes adjusting to the harsh light. It seemed like half the town was there. They had formed a semicircle around the entrance way, and I could feel their eyes upon me.

Slade jumped down from the platform he stood on, landing silently on the paved road. He clapped me on the back. "You're a hero, kid. Now go get some sleep." I began to move forward, the crowd parting before me, eyes still watching. I made my way back home, glancing back occasionally to see if anyone had followed. No one did.

All the lights were on in the house. The rope was gone from the window, there was no way to avoid this confrontation. I sighed, and opened the door. My parents were there, sitting at the dining room table. They didn't say anything as I entered, but my mom ran up to me and gave me a hug. I hugged her back. "How long have you known?" I asked.

"I didn't." She replied, hugging me tighter.

My dad was still at the table. "Slade told me around the beginning. I should have told you, Amber. I'm sorry." He said, looking down at the hardwood table. "You always said he took after my dad, I guess you were right." He still didn't look up. My grandfather had been a huntsman. He never accomplished much but our family was unnoteworthy to the point where I had heard stories of him a thousand times.

My mom sighed, still refusing to let me go. "We'll talk about that later." We were silent for a few seconds. My mom finally released me, gazing at me. I couldn't bring myself to meet it. "You must be exhausted, go get some sleep." It was an order, not a question.

I went up to my room, dropping my sword and bag by the door. The rope had been neatly rolled back up and placed in a loop on the closet door handle. I turned out the light, and flopped down onto the bed. The adrenaline had vanished from my system, and it was not long before sleep took me.

* * *

I awoke the next morning to my normal alarm, still exhausted. I dragged myself out of bed, put on the first set of clean clothes I could find, and headed downstairs. Sunlight was streaming in through the windows, the open floor plan allowing light to illuminate most of the first floor. Slade was there, chatting animatedly with my dad at the table. My mom would be out for her morning run around this time. My dad must have heard me coming down the stairs, as he spoke before looking. "Good morning, you sleep ok?"

I nodded, and walked to the kitchen, grabbing a bowl from the shelf as I went. I filled the bowl with cereal and milk, pausing to look out towards the street beyond the window over the sink. I moved back into the dining room, having to double back to grab a spoon after realizing I forgot one. "-seem shocked. Not many would have pegged him as a fighter." , I heard Slade saying.

I sat down at my normal seat at the table, next to my dad. Slade was seated across from him. He glanced up at me. "No offense, but you don't really look like one." Slade said, with a light chuckle. I grimaced but said nothing. He was right, after all. I wasn't particularly strong or fast; I had learned to rely heavily on technique with my fighting style. When most people envisioned a huntsman, they thought fast, mysterious, tall, with some ridiculous weapon larger than they were. I was… tall.

"So what are we going to do?" My dad asked, turning to Slade. "He's tasted the thrill of battle, there's no way we could prevent him from going off to become a huntsman forever, is there?"

Slade glanced at me. "Not in the slightest."

My dad nodded thoughtfully. "Beacon should still be accepting, right?" I almost choked on my cereal. Beacon? As in the greatest combat school in the nation?

"Yeah," Slade replied. "And I happen to have the headmaster's number. Enough of that talk now though, I want to talk with your son." My dad nodded, and left the room, heading to his study upstairs presumably. Slade peered at me. "How are you holding up?" He asked.

"Bit overwhelmed." I mumbled, looking down at my half-empty bowl. I suddenly wasn't feeling all that hungry.

"That's forgivable." He said, nodding. "Go grab your sword, we're going for a walk."

We walked down the street, silent. I felt self conscious; the sheath was very visible hanging by my side. I couldn't help but notice the people stopping to stare, and I saw a young girl pointing at me, tugging at her mother's arm.

We walked a few blocks before we reached Slade's workshop, a massive building that took a third if the block. I had been here many times before, but only at night. We went inside, Slade shutting the door behind us.

Slade ran a small small smithy in order to maintain his weapon, which he constantly improved upon, a living project that would die only with him. There were tool cabinets lining an entire wall, and storage cabinets lining another. The middle of the area was clear, as we commonly used it as an arena to spar.

"So, let's see this sword if yours." He said, grinning. My eyes lit up, and I handed it to him by the hilt. He pulled it out, leaving me with the sheath.

The double edged blade was three and a half feet long, with a hand-and-a-half length hilt. The end of the sword tapered off to a point, intended for stabbing. Near the base the sword was thicker than overtly necessary to accommodate the gun barrel inside.

"I used the dimensions from the sword you had me train with as a starting point." I said. "There's several other features, though."

Slade was looking it over. "This opens up, doesn't it? I can't find any switch, how does it work?" He mimed a cut with the sword, slashing downwards.

"There's circuitry inside of it. I can force different things to activate us-" I began, but he cut me off before I could stop.

"Using your semblance. That's impressive, I must say." He said. He tossed the sword back to me, and I caught it in both hands. "Let's see it then."

I pulled the sword out of the sheath, feeling the flow of energy as I grasped the hilt with my bare hand. I willed electrons to move, and they did. The blade split along the middle, the barrel gleaming in the light.

Slade whistled, eyes widening. "That's quite the noisemaker you have on there. Kick must be rough."

"Yeah," I replied. "I need to do something about that. I'm afraid that it'll kill me if I fire it while my aura is low. There's no real way to brace for the impact either."

"Any other tricks up your sleeve with this?" Slade asked.

"The entire outside is conductive, so if I'm clashing weapons with someone I can shock them." I said. "Against grimm it can help to annoy anything I can't cut into, I guess." I closed up the blade, sheathing my sword.

Slade sat down on the ground, cross legged, and motioned for me to join him. I sat down across from him. "I know you're overwhelmed with everything that's happening. Once you're at Beacon, things move fast. It's not like it is here. You're gonna need to learn to keep up." Slade said. I noted he said once instead of if. I had no objection, but it still didn't feel great to have it be all but decided for me.

Slade sighed, suddenly looking very, very tired. "You're gonna go far, kid." He said.


	2. Chapter 2

I sat in the small office in Slade's workshop, two of the greatest hunters alive standing before me. Ozpin leaned on his cane, a mug of coffee on the desk in front of him as he looked over a page of notes. Glynda Goodwitch stood beside him, arms crossed. I didn't know how Slade had gotten them to come out this far away for an entrance exam, but I didn't dare to ask. They were imposing, not just because Ozpin stood several inches taller than me but because of their reputation.

Ozpin looked up, seeming to look more through me than at me. "Well Slade certainly speaks highly of you. He was a great student, and I trust his judgment, but that doesn't mean you're excused from the examination." Glynda pursed her lips, glancing at Ozpin.

"I understand, Sir." I mumbled.

"Please, no need to be so formal." He said. "Just call me Ozpin." I nodded in reply, not wanting to speak more than I had to. "Let's start then, shall we? You may have heard that our entrance exam at Beacon is notoriously challenging, and those rumors would be correct. You will spar with Glynda. You don't need to win, just demonstrate your prowess." He said the last part quickly, before I could voice my concern.

I swallowed, finding my mouth dry. I had to spar with a fully trained huntress, and Glynda at that? This wasn't going to go well. Ozpin moved to the door, and I followed. Glynda took up a position on one side of the sparring area where I had been taught to fight. Ironic, I thought, that this was where I was going to fail. I walked to the opposite side from Glynda, eyes locked with her. "Whenever you're ready." Ozpin called out. He had taken a seat along one of the walls.

I placed a hand on the hilt of my sword, the feel of energy circulating beneath calming my pounding heart. I noticed that I hadn't loaded a clip in and mentally cursed. Why did I make this harder on myself?

In the time it took me to draw my sword she had closed the distance with ease. As I brought my sword up to parry her strike I realized that she was letting me react, holding back. We clashed weapons for several seconds. Was that riding crop metal? I let out a shock through my blade. No, it was not. "Good form." Glynda commented. "Not the fastest, but excellent technique." I gritted my teeth. I already knew this, I didn't need her to tell me.

I reached back into my bag, tossing a clip into the air behind my back. I jumped back from the clash, slamming the clip in as it fell, then timed a strike to intercept her advance. She easily parried, knocking my sword back with twirl of her weapon, then taking another swing at me. The crop stung where it hit, despite the protection from my aura. I allowed myself to flinch, then ducked forward and grabbed her arm as she started an attack to follow up. I let out a shock, causing her to drop her weapon in surprise, then took a swing with my sword. Her aura took the blow, and she shoved me back. "Unorthodox fighting style, Slade's influence is obvious." She said, dryly. "Who else would teach someone to step into an attack?"

I blocked an incoming swipe, then another, then the third hit me. She was increasing her speed, holding back less and less. I blocked another, activating the circuitry in my sword. I saw her eyebrows raise as the blade split in two, and that moment's hesitation gave me a clear shot. She was thrown back, the crack of gunfire echoing through the warehouse-esque building. I fired three more shots, emptying the clip. None of the shots hit, but I used the distraction to reload with a dust charged clip.

An unseen force pushed at me, blowing me backwards. I kept my footing, and drew on the power of dust. I raised my right hand, and lightning arced at my will. As fast as she was, Glynda couldn't dodge electricity. The room smelled of ozone as the blast caught her center of mass, knocking her down.

I felt the sensation of being crushed, my arms unable to move. Glenda had gotten up. She flicked her riding crop in my direction, and the invisible force slammed me into the wall, my sword flying from my hand.

I pulled myself to my feet. Glynda had put away her weapon. "I've seen enough, have you?" She said, turning to Ozpin, who nodded.

"I want to know what you thought you did." Ozpin said, standing up and walking over to me.

I took a few seconds to catch my breath. "Not great. She was holding back the whole time, I couldn't keep up with her speed near the end. I was only able to land hits when I caught her off guard, first with my semblance then with my weapon."

Ozpin smiled, his mouth a thin line. "None of the last twenty seven people who attempted this exam landed a single hit on Glynda. You managed three."

Glynda cut him off. "Four actually, he gave me an electric shock when he grabbed my wrist."

"Four then. Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing you at Beacon next month." He stood, glancing at me one last time before heading for the door. I had passed.

* * *

The airship more floated than flew, much of the city of Vale visible below us. There was a crackle of static as the screens that covered the windows flared to life, Glynda's visage beginning to welcome us to Beacon. I paid it little mind.

As much as I looked forward to my time at Beacon, it had been hard to say goodbye to my parents and friends back home. It had been hard for my mom to accept that I was leaving, but she coped by fussing over every little detail she could control. Even after I had hugged her and said goodby she came up with more reasons for me to stay just a minute longer. I had promised her that I would come back and visit whenever I had the chance.

My dad had took it better. He was a much more subdued than my mom, but still was sad to see me go. He was proud of me, in his own words. He was proud that I would be able to make a difference, help people, save lives. I had promised him I would.

I was lost in thought to the point where I almost didn't notice the call to disembark. I ended up at the back of the crowd, uncomfortable being around this many people.

The airship dropped us off in front of the school, a massive fortress of a institution with it's namesake Beacon Tower rising above all else.

I followed the flow of bodies through the gates, and into a courtyard like area, my height allowed me to see over the heads of most of the crowd. Ozpin and Glynda stood in a raised platform, Ozpin holding his signature cane and coffee cup.

"Good morning, students. I'm happy to welcome you all to Beacon Academy." Ozpin said, the crowd falling silent as he began. "Here you will be trained to become some of the best hunters in the world." I looked up at Ozpin, and I could swear he looked back for just a second. "Our returning students already know this, however, and to them I say; Welcome back! Everyone but the first years are free to go."

Much of the throng of people began to disperse. Ozpin stood perfectly still, only his eyes moving as he watched them leave. In less than a minute only a dozen of us remained. "All of you will spend the next four years here," Ozpin said. "But first, you must survive initiation. Follow Glynda now, she will show you the weapon lockers and the place you will be sleeping tonight." He stepped down from the stage, walking towards the Beacon Tower.

As we followed Glynda, I noticed that one of the other students was going around with a clipboard, asking each other person something. He slowed his pace to close the distance between us. "Hey, the name's Russell."

He was more than a head shorter than me, his wild brown hair nearly covering his eyes. His weapon must have been concealed, as I couldn't identify one. "I was wondering if you got in via entrance test or by transcript, and if by test how many hits did you land on Glynda? I'm trying to get a sense of how good everyone is." The words were practiced. Granted, he had asked it ten times already.

"Four." I said, glancing down at him.

He stopped short. "Bullshit! The highest anyone else got was two."

I kept walking, and Russell ran to catch up. "Why would I lie?" I asked.

"To make yourself seem better than you are, to make people want you on their team!" He seemed exasperated, and he ran a hand through his hair. "Well, I guess I'll see during initiation." He shook his head. "Four hits..." He grumbled, jogging ahead to rejoin the bulk of the group.


	3. Chapter 3

We stood near the edge of the cliff, overlooking the forest below. Twelve students, Ozpin, and Glynda. "You will all be split into teams based on your performance today. The first person you make eye contact with after you land will be your partner for the rest of your time at Beacon." Ozpin said. "You will fight together, eat together, learn together, live together. Your goal as partners today is to reach the temple ruins and retrieve an artifact. After this, you must make it back to the cliff. If you don't, you're probably dead anyways." Ozpin turned to Glynda. "Ready?" He asked. She nodded, not looking up from the screen she held in one hand.

Ozpin turned back to us. "I hope everyone has a landing strategy in mind, as we will begin - now!" With that, the first person was launched into the forest. Three seconds later, the next. I was fourth in the row, and I held my breath, nervous as I had ever been before. This was it.

I was launched skyward, a ballistic trajectory straight into the mass of trees below. I drew my sword in mid air, chosing a tall oak as my target. I took a backhanded grip on my sword, using the force my momentum to shear off the top of the tree as I fell past. I slammed the sword blade first into another, stopping abruptly. I had slowed down enough to not dislocate my arm, thankfully.

I extracted the sword, sitting down on one of the branches. I heard the sound of splintering wood as the a the tree I had decapitated fell to the ground. That would likely alert any other students nearby that someone was here. It would also alert any grimm. I dropped to the ground, landing lightly. I didn't hear any movement, no signs of life around me.

I picked a direction at random and began to walk. I kept my sword at the ready, the flow of electricity through the blade familiar and comforting. I went on like this for almost ten minutes without event. The trees seemed to be getting thicker as I walked, up until I pushed through into a large clearing. A single rock stood in the center providing a landmark.

There was a growl behind me. I turned and slashed in one fluid motion, the beowulf falling dead before I had a clear view of it. I stood perfectly still, waiting for more to come. Normally a beowulf would never be far from it's pack, what could have forced it away?

I heard it before I saw it. Heavy, lumbering footfalls, the sound of trees shattering, and a roar. The roar chilled me to the bone, a harsh, demonic sound like death itself was speaking. The grimm walked into the clearing. It was massive, standing nearly twice my height, it's gorrilla like form covered in bone white plating. The beringel looked down upon me, nothing in it's red eyes but pure malice.

I switched open my sword. My best shot was to get help from someone, there was no way I could take this alone. The grimm was still staring at me, waiting for something. I pointed the barrel at the beast, aiming center of mass. The grimm opened it's mouth, baring its teeth. I fired in that moment. The shot struck home, the sound echoing through the woods. The grimm roared once more, and I began to run. I could hear it following, not even bothering to avoid trees as it crashed through them, not slowing down. I fired again, the shot ricocheting off it's skull plate. I ejected the clip, loading in a dust charged one. Normal bullets wouldn't cut it here.

I was so worried about the monster behind me that I almost ran into the rock face. There was a rock formation sticking out of the ground, almost a complete circle around me. There was nowhere left to run. I turned to face the monster. It was standing in the entrance to the natural arena, blocking any chance of escape. It edged forward, backing me into a corner. I feigned left, and it swung an arm at me, knocking me back towards the wall. I scrambled up off the ground, breathing heavily.

I had to focus, there was no way I could do this otherwise. There was no way I could parry a swing from this thing, so that idea was out the window. I wasn't fast enough to dodge, which left me one real option. Catch it off guard.

I pulled my sword back together into a blade, and charged at the grimm. It raised an arm to swipe at me, but I slid under and behind it, spring up and onto its back. I raised my sword and stabbed at the beast's neck, piercing through and striking bone. It hadn't even noticed the wound. I lept off the grimm's back, and it turned to face me. It roared again, and began to charge.

I felt a surge of power, my aura sparking and crackling, barely contained by my physical form. I wasted no time. Lightning shot out, and the grimm convulsed. I heard a girl shout out behind me. "It's not down, kill it!"

I ran up, and began to carve into it's neck with my blade. I activated my semblance through my sword, keeping the beast down while I worked. I had cut a rather large chunk of the flesh around it's spine out when it started to get up. It swung at me in a blind fury, nowhere near as measured as it had been before. I was able to evade the attacks with side steps and hops backwards. The grimm raised both it's monstrous arms for a blow, rearing up on it's hind legs. I lept forward, placing a strike to it's jugular. In that moment, a girl lept from the top of the rock formation, holding a kukri in a backhanded grip. She landed on the beast's back, and hacked at the wound I had made earlier. I heard a wordless shout from behind us, but ignored it. I had to end this.

My sword pierced the monster's throat, and I swapped to a two handed grip, opening the blades, tearing it's jugular even more. I fired two shots, then pulled it free, and the beast staggered. I fixed my stance, swinging to the right this time. The wound in it's neck widened, its throat torn apart, there was no resistance until my sword impacted the grimm's spine. The bone splintered, and I followed through the swipe, shearing through what remained to connect the monster's head and body. It fell to the ground, dead at last.

The girl lightly jumped off the corpse as it fell, landing in front of me. She held out a hand. "Hi, my name's Nikki. I guess this makes us partners, so why don't you tell me yours?" She talked fast, cocking her head to the right as she asked the question. She had dirty blonde hair that reached her shoulders, and was wearing what seemed to be a hoodie with articulated armor plates.

I reached out and shook her hand. "I'm Gadiel. Nice to meet you."


	4. Chapter 4

I heard footsteps behind us, and I turned around. Russell, along with a guy I didn't know, had arrived. Russell was wide eyed. "Did you really just take that thing down? And the lightning? And that weapon?"

I nodded. "I'm particularly proud of the weapon. Designed it myself. The recoil is a bitch though." I shook my arm for emphasis. It hadn't bothered me in the moment, but my wrist and elbow was sore from the force of the shots.

"Well yeah, that thing sounds like a cannon! Good thing, too, otherwise you might not have gotten help in time." Russell said.

Nikki frowned. "I was trailing him for a while, I only stepped in when I decided he needed it."

I turned to her. "You were following me that whole time?" She didn't answer, but met my gaze and winked.

The guy I didn't know walked up to Nikki and I. "I don't think we've been introduced. The name's Oran." He stood an inch or so taller than me, his tan complexion contrasting with stark white hair, cut in a military buzz.

He was imposing, each of his biceps easily thicker than my neck. Strapped to his back was a massive hammer. I could see some telescoping on the handle indicating that the six foot monstrosity of a weapon was in a collapsed form.

"Gadiel Silvers." I said, shortly.

Nikki was much more enthusiastic. "Nikki here. Nice to meet you!"

"Do either of you know the way to the temple?" He asked. Ozpin mentioned it but I have no clue where it is." I shook my head. Did anyone know where this thing was?

Nikki pursed her lips. "Can't say I do, maybe we're just supposed to wander around and look for it."

Oran jumped up onto a small rock. I had no clue why, it's not like he needed the extra height to grab our attention. "Well, let's go together then. Four is twice as strong as two after all, so let's take advantage of that."

He set off, Russell close behind. He didn't wait to ensure we all were following him. I glanced over at Nikki, who shrugged. "Why not?" She said.

So we went, in a direction hopefully towards the ruins. Nikki chatted with Oran as we waked, blathering on about who knows walked. At one point Russell turned to me. "So you really got four hits then?" He asked.

"Yeah. Is that really so impressive? It felt like I did terrible. I only got them because I caught her guard with my semblance and transforming my weapon." I said. "She was holding back the entire time as well."

He shook his head. "I only got one, and that's because I surprised her as well. Four is incredible."

I shrugged. "I guess." I still wasn't convinced, however. Many of these people had been training for far longer than I had, or had gone to a school and dedicated much more of their life to it.

We walked for several more minutes, Nikki eventually getting bored of her conversation with Oran and falling back a bit to chat with me. "So your semblance, it's lightning, right?"

I nodded. "Electricity in general. I can control the flow, or generate current myself. It's how I make my sword switch open. Normally I can only generate a little bit, enough to shock but not injure. With dust, it gets a lot more powerful."

Nikki nodded. "Yeah, I saw. I actually boosted you more than the dust did probably, all my semblance does is let me improve those of others. You mentioned you built your sword, mind sharing the specifics?"

I pulled it out, the blade stained red from the grimm blood coating it. I was gonna have to clean it when we got back. "The blade is made from hardened steel. I did all the forging by hand, my teacher said that I shouldn't rely on a machine to make something I would stake my life on. I can use my semblance to activate servos within the blade, which opens it."

I sent a charge to the correct circuit, servos hissing softly, and the blade split. "The gun setup is a modified .50 caliber barrel, firing high powered rifle rounds, loading clips of four bullets at a time. I'm considering using a lower caliber round and switching out the barrel, since I'm relying on aura to not break my arm by shooting it." I paused. "Sorry if I'm rambling, i'm big on weapons tech and tend to blather on a bit."

"Nah, it's fine." Nikki said. "Everyone needs something to be passionate about." I closed the blade of my sword, sticking it back in its sheath.

"I think we found it!" Oran called out from ahead. He pushed through some bushes and out of sight. The rest of us followed close behind, emerging into a massive clearing. There it was: a stone temple, with six pedestals arranged in a circle. Four were empty, other groups must have reached here first.

The two that remained were identical. They also appeared to be oversized brass versions of the shoe player piece from monopoly. "Just great. Always stuck with the stupid shoe." I heard Russell grumble.

"Bad monopoly experience?" Oran asked.

Russell nodded. "I swear that game destroys any sense of familial love for at least a week afterwards."

Nikki grabbed one of the 'artifacts', then turned back to us. "So we have to get back to the cliff now right?"

"Yeah." I said. "I have no clue if we have to scale it or anything though."

"Either way, it's over there." Nikko said, pointing behind us. I turned around. Sure enough, in the distance the vertical cliff face was visible.

"Let's go!" Oran said, beginning to walk towards it. Russell grabbed the remaining shoe, then jogged to catch up. Nikki and I followed, eventually walking side by side with the other two.

There was a scream from ahead. Oran looked around wildly, then broke into a run. The rest of us followed suit, the others quickly gaining ground on me, Oran far in the lead.

We crested a hill when we saw what was going on. Four of the other students, surrounded by a veritable army of grimm, numbering at least a hundred. One of the kids was lying in the ground, leg twisted at an odd angle.

Oran pulled the hammer from his back, the handle extending out to nearly ten feet as he brandished it aloft. He yelled as he crashed into the horde of grimm, each swing of his hammer cutting a swath through the monsters.

I wasted no time. I drew my sword, and leapt into the fray. The grimm were everywhere. Each swing of my sword connected, my sword eviscerating the creatures it hit. I pivoted as I struck, clearing out the area around me. In the fight I caught a glimpse of Oran, each hit of his hammer now producing shockwaves somehow. I struck down more and more of the monsters, relishing the work. I hated these beasts. As a child I would have loved to explore the woods outside town, but the grimm prevented that. I wished humanity could just live in peace, but the grimm prevented that. We as a species caused more than enough pain and suffering to ourselves. The grim took advantage of that.

I cut a path to the center, joining the group that was surrounded. They had formed a circle around the injured student. They made space for me and I joined the ring, taking swings at any grimm that got within reach. I could see Russell, brandishing a knife left a red trail behind as it swung. It caught a grimm in the chest and passed through, not losing any visible momentum.

"Get ready! This is gonna be loud!" I heard Oran yell, and he slammed his hammer down on the earth, the air pulsing around us. Chunks of rock were floating in air, and the grimm along with them. Legs flailed as the suspended monsters tried and failed to move. Nikki had her hand to his back, and his aura was visible, sparkling and crackling around him. "Kill them now!" He yelled. "I can't keep this up much longer.

We began to systematically destroy the suspended grimm, the nearly thirty that still remained. It didn't take long before the last was slain, ran through with a spear from a boy I did not recognize. Oran collapsed, and with it the rocks and dirt that had been caught up with the grimm.

I rushed over to his side. "You alright?" I asked.

"I think so." He said. "That really did a number on me though." He slowly stood up, swaying slightly. The other group was heading towards the cliffs, two of their members carrying the one with a broken leg. "That was scary, honestly."

"What was?" I asked, glancing at Nikki and Russell, who shrugged.

Oran stared at me. "You were, man. I saw you in that fight, you were absolutely butchering those. I figured you were good when you killed that ape thing, but that was something else."

I shrugged. "I'm not that great at fighting. I don't know why people keep making it out like I am." I paused for a second. "I'm really bad in terms of speed, I can't dodge attacks that well."

"You just don't see it from the outside, then, because you're far better than I am." Russell said from behind me. "I seriously apologize for doubting you before."

"I'll say you're better than me as well." Nikki supplied. "I've seen trained huntsman fight with less skill."

I frowned, but said nothing. That couldn't be true, I only had three years of training, and that wasn't even full time. Slade always said that I was a natural, but that was bullshit. Practice matters far more than innate skill. "Anyways, let's go. We don't want to hold everyone up." Oran said.

I looked towards the cliff. The sun was right overhead. "We're holding up lunch as well." I said.

Nikki smiled. "Why are we standing here then?" She asked, before setting off at a jog. We all followed, moving together, back towards Beacon, back towards home.


	5. Chapter 5

We stood in front of the assembled school, all twelve first year students on the stage. I didn't listen to Ozpin's speech very closely, he was going on about the legacy of beacon or some other nonsense. I was waiting for one thing: the announcement of teams.

"Gadiel Silvers, Nikkel Adams, Oran Pepperstone, and Russell Valdez. Your groups both retrieved brass shoe artifacts." I saw Glynda shake her head, but Ozpin gave it no mind. "From now on, you will be team ORNG, lead by Oran Pepperstone!" The audience applauded. I glanced at Oran, who looked positively mortified.

"So, dearest leader, what are your orders?" Nikki asked, the sarcasm so thick I could almost see it.

"Never call me that again, for starters." He said, shaking his head. "I don't feel ready for this, why did he choose me?"

I shrugged. "Who knows. You're stuck with it, I guess."

He looked over at me. "Yeah. I suppose I am."

* * *

We got the the room as soon as we could. It was rather plain, probably left up to us to decorate. It didn't take long before half the room was covered in unpacked stuff. I hadn't brought a whole ton, mostly just unfinished or assorted electronics I liked to mess around with. There was one family portrait that I brought, and I set it down on my bedside table.

"Alright, team meeting!" Oran called from across the room. He was quickly adjusting to the role it seemed. We gathered in a semicircle. Oran was looking at a stack of papers, glancing up once to make sure everyone was listening. "We have a class tomorrow at nine, we should try not to be late for that." He set down the papers. "But that's not the main thing. We're going to be working as a team, so we need to all know each other well and be comfortable around each other."

He looked around. "I know team building exercises are dumb, but still, why not give it a shot. Why don't we go around and say what hobbies we have?."

I spoke up first. "I like to build things, tinker around with technology. I'm most recently messing around with some old anti-grav engine parts I got at a junkyard a few weeks ago."

"I meditate." Russell said. "It helps to clear my mind, keep me focused on what I need to do."

Nikki jumped in afterwards. "I actually read a lot. I know it seems odd given how… animate I can be but it's true. I especially love mysteries." I tried and failed to imagine Nikki reading a suspenseful book. While I didn't doubt her, it conflicted a lot with her personality.

"See, that wasn't so bad, now was it?" Oran said. It occurred to me that he hadn't said anything. I glanced at Nikki and Russell. They both looked confused.

"You haven't gone yet." Nikki pointed out.

"Oh, right, sorry. I exercise a lot, basically for the same reasons you meditate." He said, gesturing towards Russell. "I'm not going to keep you here any longer, you can all go back to what you were doing."

"Well that was pointless." Russell said, sighing.

"Hey! It wasn't pointless, just… point deficit." Oran retorted. I went back to my stuff, continuing to unpack the little I had still to do.

I was done far before everyone else, so I decided to head to the weapon lockers to tinker with my sword. In my bag I brought my tools and some spare parts.

The campus was mostly empty, people were probably reuniting with friends and teams, catching up with the summer's events. The lockers were deserted as well, although that I was expecting.

Retrieving my sword, I set about my first task of sharpening the blade. It hadn't dulled that much, no need to put it to a grindstone, so I just used a hand sharpener.

Second, I opened the blade, noting that one of the servos had failed. I set about replacing it, disassembling the half of the blade with the offending component. While I worked, I began to brainstorm solutions to the recoil issue. It had been on my mind for two months now, and I hadn't figured out a proper solution.

I resolved to wait, as I didn't have a replacement barrel ready yet and modifying this one would be more work, not to mention more dangerous.

"It's a beauty of a weapon." I heard someone say, and I turned to face them. It was Ozpin, complete with a cup of coffee. "And rumor is spreading that you are just as powerful as it."

I turned my eyes down. "That's just the thing. I'm not that good, there's no way I could be. I have so little training compared to some of these people!"

Ozpin sat down next to me, placing his coffee gently off to the side. "Slade was one of the greatest to graduate beacon in recent history. It came as a shock to most when he moved back home after he graduated. He never told me why, but he always had this sense of duty that baffled his teachers, maybe that is what drove him back." Ozpin cleared his throat. "Either way, you were taught by an outstanding huntsman. You should take pride in your skill, rather than denying its presence."

With that, Ozpin got up to leave, and left me sitting there, conflicted. I was stuck mentally, without an easy way reconcile two opposite ideas.

* * *

The first class we had at Beacon was combat. Professor Goodwitch stood in the center of the ring. "Today you will begin the process of assessing your teammates fighting abilities. Would teams ORNG and LILC please each nominate a member to go first?"

I looked around at my team. All eyes were on me. I sighed, exasperated. They had gotten it into their heads that I was this amazing fighter, and I didn't think I could live up to it. I stood up, and moved down to the ring.

I faced down an athletic looking girl, wearing a hoodie and skinny jeans. Long black hair draped down the front of her face obscured most of her features, But I could see green eyes through the natural veil.

She reached to her back, a small pipe shaped object quickly extending to a full length spear. It occurred to me that I had fought alongside this girl only yesterday, against the grimm horde. I unsheathed my sword, holding it at a downward angle as we began to circle each other.

The room began to shift, the illusion of an empty hall with mirrored floors taking the place of reality. The girl leapt forward, making the first move.

The attack was fast, but I managed to bring my blade up in time to deflect it. I flicked my the blade down, parrying her attempt to strike me with the blunt end. The next two attacks followed the same pattern, downward slash followed by upward swipe. I reiterated the same defense, this time following up with an offhand punch. The girl reeled, and I pressed my advantage, stabbing dead center. Her aura blocked the hit but she was sent flying, her weapon knocked from her hand.

She jumped to her feet, and I let her reclaim her spear, her eyes never leaving me as she bent down to grab it. I went on the offensive, heavy strikes wearing down her guard as she backpedaled, blocking with her spear. I feigned a hit, pulling back before her spear reached its intended position. I cut low, knocking her to the ground, the arena fading around us as I did.

"That's enough." Goodwitch called out. I offered my hand to the girl, helping her pull herself up. "As you can see on the display, Ms. Davidson's aura fell below twenty percent. In a tournament this would mean that Mr. Silvers won the fight." I walked back to my seat, eyes following me.

"That was amazing!" Nikki whispered, but I just shrugged.

Professor Goodwitch must have heard, as she looked up at Nikki. "Yes, Ms. Adams, his performance was outstanding. Yet, I saw him hold back. Team PTCH, please nominate a member, and Mr. Silvers, please return to the ring."

She turned to address the class as a whole. "Under normal circumstances I would never have a student fight twice in a row, but I believe that Mr. Silvers has far more in him." She looked over at me. "Don't hold back this time, I want to see you truly fight."

I faced my new opponent, a stocky boy with a sword and shield. He took a defensive stance. He began to edge forwards, but I held position. His guard was well suited for a mindless grimm, but sloppy otherwise.

I swung down, fully expecting the shield to block the hit. I was proven right, and let out a shock through the blade, through the shield, to his arm. The boy shouted, dropping the shield, his yell cut short as my strike knocked the wind out of him. He was sent flying, and I activated the mechanisms to open my blade. The shot caught him in mid air, knocking him further back and into a wall. "Much better!" Professor Goodwitch called out. "You can take a seat now, Mr. Silvers." I went back.

This time Nikki was silent, and it was Oran who spoke. "If you still can't see how skilled you are, then you're blind." I closed my eyes, exhaling. I still didn't want believe that they were right. I couldn't be so much better with so little training, it just didn't make sense.

I thought back to what Ozpin said yesterday. Even if Slade was an amazing fighter, there was no way he could teach me so much better than anyone else, it didn't make sense. And yet…

* * *

I dialed in Slade's number, hoping that he would pick up. The first ring had barely finished before he did. "Hey kid! How are things going?" He said.

"Pretty good." I replied. "I've got a team now, they're pretty cool."

"That's great to hear! Any problems so far?"

I sighed. "Well, that's part of the reason I called. They seem to have decided that I'm this ridiculously great fighter. Even Professor Goodwitch is playing it up. I feel like I can't be all that, and that I'll never live up to their expectations."

Slade sighed. "I guess you can't know, can you? All I can say is that you're most definitely good. You need to believe in yourself more, you know? If so many people think you're great, they might just be right."

With that he hung up, my question still unanswered.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello everyone! This is the first update after the initial upload. If you haven't read anything by me before I use these author's notes to talk about random stuff and reply to reviews. Feel free to skip them, but they sometimes have useful info.**

 **The** **Guest:** I'm glad you like the story! The gun is conventional, but I could see a railgun working well with Gadiel's semblance. I don't see that sort of recoil compensation working in the space a sword provides, what's already there is a major stretch as is.

 **On with the story!**

The city was bustling, cars and people all over the place, a far cry from the sleepy town I hailed from. I pulled up a map on my scroll, since I had no clue where I was going otherwise. It seemed that there was a manufacturers surplus shop a few blocks to the west. Nikki followed behind me, humming as we walked.

People seemed to avoid us, parting to let us pass. I surmised that the visibility of my weapon had something to do with it. It had gotten to the point where I felt unprepared whenever I didn't have it on me, so I had stopped using the weapons lockers and just keeping it in my room. We reached the shop, a rather grey building with a painted sign out front. I opened the door, a small bell chiming as I did.

The inside was styled after a warehouse, but far smaller than was practical for one. The walls were covered in sheet metal, nailed over the brick walls. There were several shelves, all full of carefully sorted mechanical parts, each individually tagged with prices. The organization made it easy to find what I was looking for.

The shopkeep, a burly middle aged man in a grey t shirt and tan canvas pants walked up to us. "You looking for anything in particular?" He asked.

I nodded. "Anti-gravity generator parts." I said, pointing to the self full of them right in front of us. The man grunted, and walked away again. The prices weren't unreasonable given how complex they were, but they were going to eat heavily into the budget my parents gave me. I heard the doorbell jingle, and a new set of footfalls heading towards the back.

"Hands up! This is a robbery!" I heard a muffled voice say. I looked at Nikki, her face deadly serious all of a sudden, cheer replaced with resolve unmatched my iron or steel.

We slowly walked towards the back, my hand firmly on the hilt of my sword. We exited the row of shelves to see the shopkeeper behind his counter, his hands in the air. The robber seemed to be a taller man, holding a gun pointed towards the shopkeeper's face. "You're going to stay here and not call the cops, or I shoot you." He said.

I walked up behind the man. The shopkeeper kept a straight face, not even making eye contact with me. In one motion I drew my sword and punched at the back of the man's head. The shopkeeper grabbed the gun, tossing it to the ground. The man started to get up, freezing when he saw the tip of my sword pointed at him. "There's more outside." The shopkeeper said.

"We'll handle it." Nikki replied, drawing her kukri. "You keep this guy here and call the cops."

The shopkeeper nodded, pointing the pistol at the fallen man and getting out a scroll from behind the counter. "You better not move." He growled, beginning to dial for help. Nikki and I walked towards the door, casually opening it and walking outside. There were maybe five men, leaning on the wall. They were all armed, one with a gun and the rest with a combination of bats and swords.

"Wait, what?" One of them said as we exited. "You're not-" He raised his gun. "Get them!"

I charged, following his aim and stepping out of the way before he shot. I took a swing, knocking him backwards. I ran at him again, dodging a swing from a bat as I went. I punched him in the face with my offhand, his aura cracking and fading after the hit. He was out cold.

Nikki had taken out one of the others, but the other three had begun to encircle her, raining down blows as she dodged and parried every hit. She caught my eye, and I felt a surge of power, electricity crackling up and down my body as my aura raged against physical constraints. I raised an arm. Lightning struck, jumping between the three men and leaving Nikki unharmed. They staggered, and I switched open my sword. One shot to the leg sent one to the ground, shouting out in pain. My arm shook from the recoil, but I held steady. Nikki punched one in the face, sending him sprawling. The last one was smart about it and just dropped his weapon, attempting to run, failing to notice the two police officers who had just arrived.

"Got a call about some robbers." One of them said, as another tackled the man trying to flee. "Guess they shouldn't have picked a store with Beacon students in it."

They began going around, handcuffing the would-be thieves. One went inside the store, and we followed him up to the counter. "Thank you for dealing with that." The shopkeeper said to us, as the cop handcuffed the remaining criminal. "You two must be students at Beacon, right?"

"Yeah." I said.

"I was almost a huntsman." The man said wistfully. "Had to quit school when my dad died, take over the business. Anyways, how about this. You two promise me that you'll be the best damn hunters you can be, and I'll give you a discount on everything."

"Sounds like a deal." Nikki said. "Sorry about your dad."

The man gave a sad smile. "Oh, don't worry about it. He was a good man, but it's long past by now."

Nikki turned to the officer. "Any idea why these guys would try to rob here?"

The officer shrugged. "Dunno. They all have matching tattoos, this stylized Z thing. Doesn't match any gang symbols in our database though. If I had to guess I would say they wanted parts for something, there are better places to rob for cash than a specialty shop like this."

"I see." Nikki said. "Thanks anyway."

Nikki continued to chat with the store owner while I went back to the perfectly sorted aisles, picking out the parts I needed. Being able to get this stuff cheap was great because it meant I could replace stuff if I messed up, as well as having money for anything else for the next 3 months.

I brought the parts back up to the front, the shopkeep only ringing up half of the parts. "Whaddya need all these for anyways?" He asked.

"I'm making a jetpack." I responded. "Partly to help in combat, partly because it'd be cool to have one."

The man's eyes widened. "Well ain't that something? I guess it should work in theory, but how are you going to do the controls? The reason that jetpacks aren't everywhere is mostly because they control like a mechanical bull."

I held up my hand, forcing electricity to arc between my thumb and pointer finger. "I think I'll find a way." I said, a grin spreading across my face.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello everyone! Not much to say today, here's another chapter.**

Professor Port stood by the caged grimm, passing his gaze over the class. "Now, class. I have here in this cage a creature of grimm. The creatures of grimm are the reason why this school exists: to train you to defeat them. Thee grimm are fierce and dangerous. It takes a true huntsman to face them without fear." I could swear he was looking at me as he spoke. "Are any of you brave enough to come down here and demonstrate a huntsman's courage?"

No one raised their hand. I made a point of sinking lower into my chair, but it was for naught. "Well then." Professor Port said. "If no one will volunteer then I might have to call on someone." He made a show of looking around the room. "Why not… Mr. Silvers. I've heard wondrous things about you from Professor Goodwitch. Come on down now."

I heard Russell snicker slightly. I stood up, determined to not let my frustration show. This kept happening, people kept talking up my abilities higher and higher. I only hoped I could survive the fall. I made my way down, keeping my eyes in the cage.

Despite the shadows inside I made out the form of a beowulf. This would be fast. Port pulled a lever. "Begin!" He shouted, as the cage opened. The beast spotted me, and in that instant my qualms vanished, replaced with the rush of adrenaline and clarity that came with combat.

The beast rushed at me in a mindless charge, no thought on its mind but the kill. I sidestepped the charge, a flick of my sword injuring a back leg. The grimm came crashing to the ground, and I walked over to it. My blade rose as I stared at the despicable creature before me, hatred burning in its red eyes, then fell in an instant. The corpse began to dissolve, a shallow scrape in the marble floor where my strike had landed.

"Bravo!" Port exclaimed. "An absolutely flawless performance." I headed back to my seat, sheathing my sword as I walked. "Class, did you see how calmly Gadiel reacted when the grimm was charging? That actually reminds me of a time when I was in a very similar situation, surrounded by monsters…"

It was around this time that I along with the rest of the class began to tune out whatever it was that Port was saying. "Great job, as usual." Oran said, pulling out his scroll, probably checking messages or whatnot.

"Alright, what's your problem." Nikki said, turning to me. "You're obviously the best fighter in our class but you refuse to believe it. I wanna know why."

I sighed. "I don't feel like I have a right to be good."

Nikki looked exasperated. "Of course you do, idiot!" She said.

I shook my head. "I have so little training, so little experience. I got in here because I caught Professor Goodwitch off guard, not because I'm so skilled or anything like that."

"That doesn't matter." Oran said. "What matters is the fact that you are a step above everyone else in this class."

"Yeah." Russell said. "Stop being so damn unsure of yourself."

I sighed, looking down at the desk. "Can you guys give it a rest, for now at least? Give me some time to think things through." I said, still not looking up.

"Alright." Nikki said. "You can't run from this forever, though, you're gonna have to face it eventually."

It was late, probably after midnight. I had gone down to the weapons locker so that I could work while everyone else slept, making the final adjustments. The past few weeks had consisted of me rushing through my work and study so that I could continue to tinker with the anti-grav pack, and I had spent little time sleeping. It seemed that as time went on people seemed to expect more and more from me. I feared the day when I would fail them.

I made the final adjustments, adjusting the power settings on the downwards thruster, tightening the screws. I slipped the backpack sized device on, my excitement building. I hurried outside, I would need room to test this. The moon was out, stars bright in the sky, a picturesque night.

I sent an electrical impulse to the correct thruster, a mere thought activating the anti-gravity generators. I pushed myself up, a slight jump sending me soaring. The feeling of weightlessness was strange, but I was in control. The entire system ran off of a single dust crystal, far more stable than any liquid or electrical power cell. The pack was quiet, a soft whirr barely audible over the wind. I set myself down on the ground. The first test was a success, but my work wasn't done. I had to keep testing, finding and eliminating any flaws. I would betting my life on this machine, I couldn't afford to be negligent.

I took off the pack, carrying it with me as I made my way back to the dormitory. I gently opened the door, careful to not make much noise for fear of waking the others. I stepped inside, only to be faced with Professors Oobleck and Goodwitch. "Mr. Silvers, if you would come with us. We have something we need to talk about." Oobleck said, adjusting his glasses.

The elevator ride up Beacon tower was long. I still had no clue what this was about, had I done something wrong in making the jetpack? The professors stood behind me, not saying a word. The lift door opened, revealing a large room with clockwork mechanisms lining the ceiling. We were at the height of Beacon tower. Ozpin sat behind a desk, the holographic image of a man in military uniform projected upon it. He adjusted a camera on his desk, pointing it away from him and towards me. "Greetings, Gadiel. Sorry to keep you up later than it already is, but General Ironwood here noticed the light from your invention there while we were talking." I exhaled, only then realizing that I had been holding my breath. I wasn't in trouble then.

"Luck of God, then." The man, Ironwood, said.

"What do you mean?" I asked, furrowing my brow.

Iron sighed. "Gadiel translates to luck of God. And it's damn well accurate! Look at that thing, it's made from scrap. It's a miracle it didn't explode and kill you!"

"I beg to differ, sir." I said, frowning. "It doesn't look great because I had to buy all the parts myself, and couldn't get anything custom made, but exploding is out of the-"

Ironwood cut me off. "And how does this thing control! If there was a way to make jetpacks that functioned without hand controls then the entire Atlesian military would be outfitted with them in a week!"

"I'm sorry sir, but I don't think that anyone but me could control this." I said, measuring my words.

Ironwood sputtered slightly. "But you're just a kid, if you-"

Ozpin cut in. "James, calm down. I'm sure you're tired but I've rarely seen you this flustered. Gadiel's semblance gives him an extremely accurate control over electrical current. I would think that is how you control this device." Ozpin addressed me directly.

I nodded, silently.

"Gadiel is a very talented student. He is far and away the best fighter in his class, and he designed and built his weapon as well." Oobleck said. I looked down at the ground, but said nothing.

The General looked me over. "Let's see it then. Show me the best Beacon has to offer, Gadiel."

Glynda walked up, standing opposite me. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to." She said.

I shook my head. "It's fine." I set my stance, drawing my sword and holding it ready.

"Begin!" Ironwood barked, and so we did. Glynda and I began to circle around, each waiting for the other to attack first. She wasn't going to attack, I realized. She was waiting for me to demonstrate what I could do. I feigned an attack, quickly reversing my grip and attacking from a different angle. She blocked the strike, her speed still so far above me. I pressed the attack, flicking my blade in a circle to place a strike on her wrist. She reflexively dropped her riding crop, and with my right hand I made an open palmed strike, connecting with her stomach, sending an electric shock coursing through her.

I gave her a few seconds to catch her breath, as she telekinetically retrieved her weapon. We stared eachother down again, each waiting for the other to move. She went on the offensive, swift repeated strikes raining down on me. I blocked them all. I blocked with my sword to the left, metal plated glove to the right. Glynda was barely holding back.

I saw my chance. A strike coming towards my left, angled just so… I blocked, switching open my sword, a shot striking true. Glynda staggered back with the force of the shot. She glanced over at Ironwood. "Satisfied?" She asked.

Ironwood nodded. "Looks like there's going to be stiff competition at next year's Vytal festival." The General then addressed me directly. "Oobleck is right, you're certainly outstanding."

"He trained under Slade for three years." Ozpin cut in.

"I see. That explains things." Ironwood said.

"I still don't know what you mean by that, Headmaster." I said. "You mentioned Slade when we talked before, but I still don't get why. Yes he's skilled, but how does that mean I can learn so much so quickly?"

Ozpin raised an eyebrow. "That's Slade's responsibility to tell you. If he hasn't, I won't. Now, go get some sleep. It's late, and you have classes tomorrow."

I headed back to the elevator, the eyes of Ironwood watching me as I went, lingering even as the elevator doors closed.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello again everyone! Just a word for anyone who might be waiting for an update on my other active story, I write at my leisure, because I want to, not out of a sense of duty to put out content. Right now I want to work on this.**

 **The Guest** : Gadiel's self doubt is his fatal flaw. I've made sure every OC character in this story has one, whether or not it is already obvious. Gadiel being the narrator means that his is most glaring.

 **On with the story!**

I faced off against the four of them, alone. Team LILC encircled me, preparing for the bout to begin. The jetpack was secured to my back, disguised roughly as a normal backpack. That would fall apart quickly once I activated it though. "This sort of training is only done when we have a single, exceptional, student." Professor Goodwitch called out. I clenched my fist. Why did she insist on making a point of saying things like this?

"A one versus four scenario is the equivalent of a worst case. When you are outnumbered by this much, you can't hold anything back." She continued. "The match will begin in 3!" The room began to shift, the illusion of a cathedral hall taking shape. "2!" I put my hand on the hilt of my sword. "1!" I saw the enemy team assume stance. "Go!"

I fired up my pack, the disguise falling apart as the device heated up, gravity bending around me as I rocketed towards one of their number. I parried a hurried strike, two swift blows knocking him off his feet. I caught a slash of a ninjato with my armored glove, sending an electric shock down the girl's arm. The other two opponents attacked at once, forcing me backwards, on the defensive. Spear jabs from one kept me off balance, while the other took heavy swings of a mace, jets of flame roaring out of the head on each attack. I blocked a jab, ducking past an overhand swing of the mace, my pack aiding my motion. The punch connected with the girl's face, aura protecting her from any real damage, but throwing her off her groove. I parried a spear thrust, sending the blow off to the side and at the mace wielder.

"Sorry sis!" The girl with the spear gasped.

"Just get him!" The mace girl growled.

The other two had recovered, and I was encircled again. I glanced at my aura meter. It was full, I hadn't been hit a single time. The team closed in, leaving me with only one direction to escape. Up. I sent a pulse to the jetpack, rocketing up and off the ground. I took a vicious swipe at the one boy's head, sending him to the ground as his aura flared. He was out.

I pushed downwards off the ceiling, the illusion flickering where my feet touched the true surface. I felt a sudden impact, and I adjusted the gravity fields, touching down and beginning to run at the same time. A bullet whizzed past me, then another, then another. The girl with a ninjato was providing fire support as the other two charged me, in tandem once again. I turned to face them, switching open my sword. My first shot hit the mace girl's knee, sending to the ground as the impact threw off her footing. The second hit the weapon of the girl shooting at me, sending it flying from her hand. The third was center of mass on the spear girl, but she seemed to shrug off the impact, barely breaking stride. I used my jetpack to quickly accelerate sideways, sidestepping the spear strike. I rushed past her, landing a savage blow to the back of the girl with the mace as she was pushing herself off the ground. She fell back down, her aura crackling as it faded.

I rolled my wrist, flicking my sword around in a circle, leaving the blade open. I settled into a two handed grip, resting on the balls of my feet. The girl with the ninjato had retrieved her weapon charged at me, shouting. At the last second she pulled back, the spear girl vaulting over her, the steel tip gleaming in the light. She had overextended her weapon. I switched my sword to my offhand, then reached out with my left, grabbing the spear above the head, pushing it off to the side. The girl adjusted quickly, attempting to kick me as she rapidly fell towards me. I took a clumsy upward swing, my right hand nowhere near as coordinated as my left, but it was enough. The girl fell to the ground, but I didn't have time to see if she was out. I switched my sword back to my other hand, just in time to parry a swipe. I blocked the next three, four, five, my breathing heavy. I was starting to tire, I had to end this. I angled my sword, and the next strike fell between the gap between blade and barrel, becoming wedged between. We clashed weapons and I pushed down with my bodyweight, the girl struggling to push my aim away as I forced the blade level, pointing at her. The shot fired, and her aura covered her in a visible shield, before fizzling out. I extracted the ninjato, throwing it to her as she headed towards the sidelines.

The spear caught me in the back. I felt the pain of the strike and I whipped around, my sword connecting with the spear handle. I locked eyes with the girl, our weapons crossed, arms fully extended. She had a look of desperate fury, and yet… her gaze softened slightly. "I yield!" She called out, lowering her weapon.

I sheathed my sword, turning towards Professor Goodwitch as the illusion faded. "I see you've perfected your new equipment." She said.

"Yes ma'am." I replied. "It's working excellently." This was something I felt proud of, I had designed and built this all by myself. If I was to be remembered, I wanted it to be for this rather than some inflated idea of my combat skills.

"That's it for today, class dismissed." Goodwitch declared, much to my relief.

* * *

"Absolutely incredible." Russell said, once we had left the room. "No one else would have stood a chance." He laughed, bitterness creeping into his tone. "Everyone knows you're the best, why don't you just accept it already?"

"Calm down." Oran said, his eyes beginning to widen. "What's gotten into you, Russell?"

I saw Nikki bite her lip, staying silent.

"Gotten into me? I'm more concerned with what's gotten into him!" Russell yelled the words. "It's a fool who doesn't know himself, I say, and he obviously doesn't!" He walked off in the direction of the library, shoving past a group of other students.

"He was the best fighter in the class at Signal." Nikki said, quietly. I turned around to look at her. "I could understand him being frustrated, but I've never seen him like this." She was crying, small tears forming a river down her face.

"I don't know what to do." Oran murmured. "If I go talk to him it might make things worse, and if I don't, the same." He stood silent for a few seconds, unmoving, before heading off in pursuit of Russell.

Nikki was still crying, but she headed off as well, back towards the dorms, the opposite way as Russell and Oran. I stood on the spot, trying to process what had just happened.

There was a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see the spear girl, the team LILC member. "I was wondering if you'd be willing to spar one on one with me later tonight." She said, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes.

"Sure." I replied, almost automatically, and really, why not? It was better than trying to sort out this team drama.

She smiled. "Great! See you later then." She turned to walk away.

"I'm sorry, but I don't seem to remember your name." I said, that realization having just dawned on me.

"It's Laurel Davidson." She said, still smiling.

"Alright, see you." I said. Something was odd about her mannerisms, not wrong or bad, but strange. I shook my head. Maybe I just didn't understand girls that well.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello again everyone! Nothing to say today.**

I headed back towards the dorm, carrying my jetpack by my side. I had to make sure it hadn't been damaged at all in the fight, as well as make a few slight adjustments. The left rear anti gravity generator was outputting slightly more than the others, for one.

I found the room empty, so I immediately began my work. The pack was pristine, not a single scratch on it. It has performed beautifully. I plugged my pad into the interface I had designed, adjusting a variable in the code of the offending generator down by .219 to compensate for the hardware deviance. I was little more than an educated guess, but the only way to know its accuracy was trial and error.

That done, I laid down on top of my bed, finally getting the break that I well and truly deserved. It was around then that I remembered I should sharpen my sword. I groaned, pushing myself up, getting back to work once more.

I had spent maybe an hour doing various tasks before the door opened. As I heard it creak I shut the history textbook, looking over to see Otan and Nikki. "Where's Russell?" I asked.

"Still angry." Nikki said.

Oran sighed, looking rather defeated. "It's my fault." He said, quietly. "I'm the leader, I should be trying to do more to keep everyone happy."

"It's not your fault. If anyone is to blame it's me, I'm the one who he's mad at." I said.

Nikki looked exasperated. "Don't you blame yourself either!" She said. "Russell's issue is his own. We can help him, but we don't help anything by blaming ourselves for it. Look, I know we aren't that close as a team, but we have to consider each other as friends, and friends don't let friends blame themselves."

Oran sat down on his bed, looking down at his clasped hands, his tone downtrodden as he spoke. "You're right. Gadiel, you did nothing wrong, don't think this was your fault. The only person whose issue this is is Russell. He has to work it out alone." I looked away, opening back up my textbook. Russell had said that someone who doesn't knowthemself is a fool. I knew who I thought I was, that I was sure. But did I really know how others saw me?

* * *

I pushed open the door to the combat classroom. Laurel was already there, standing down in the ring. "Glad you made it!" She called out, waving.

I walked down to the center, my steps echoing in the all but empty room. "I'm glad I could be here." I replied as I descended the final steps, stopping a few feet away from her.

"I heard about what's going on with your team from Nikki." She said. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. I don't know what Russell is going to say or do when I next see him, and that scares me. People have never been my strongest point." I said. "People are so much harder to predict than a sword is. Once a sword is swung, there's only so many ways it can go."

She nodded. "Why don't we get started?" She asked, her spear telescoping to full length as she pulled it out.

I drew my sword. "Let's." I said, tightening my grip on the handle. I attacked first, quick strikes which she blocked with equally swift flicks of her spear. "What do people see me as?" I asked, punctuating my question with a powerful thrust of my sword.

"What do you mean by that?" She said, deflecting the stab down towards the ground.

"People say I'm the best fighter here, but what else? What sort of image do I give off?" I pressed the attack, a heavy upward stroke.

"You seem smart, almost scarily so. I think people look up to you, but are afraid because of your talent." She jumped back out of range of the strike, running forward for an attack. "Which makes it all the more strange to them that you don't seem to have faith in yourself."

I pushed the spearhead aside with a flick if my blade, then deflected the follow up from the staff end. "I can't deny that I'm above average at this point, class today proved that. What I'm scared of is when the expectations get too large, and it all comes crashing down on me."

"Then don't let us down." She said, as if it were that simple, a long sweeping strike at my legs.

"I can't do it forever." I said, vaulting over the strike, sword held in both hands. "But I'll try my best." I brought my blade down, knocking the spear from her hands.

I landed next to her, the rush of air buffeting her hair. "I think that's enough for now." She said. "We should do this again soon, though." She had this almost serene smile on her face, despite having been fighting. There was definitely something up here, but not anything bad. Maybe even something good.

"Sounds great." I said. "Next week same time good for you?"

She nodded. "See you later!"

I hummed to myself the whole way back to the dorms.

* * *

Russell was in the room when I got back. He acknowledged my entrance with a nod but said nothing. It was fine by me. A confrontation was something I sincerely wanted to avoid.

"So how'd it go?" Nikki asked.

"Fine." I said.

She gave me this knowing smile, and winked. I felt like I was missing something extremely obvious. I pushed the thought from my mind, opening up my history book for the third time this evening. I absentmindedly toyed with motes of electricity, blue white arcs jumping between my thumb and forefinger. It was therapeutic almost, to let my aura flow in a circle. I poked another finger between the flow, the feedback calming my soul.

* * *

We walked through the city streets, all four of us. Oran had decided that we should visit the city and get more familiar with it as a whole. I had my jetpack concealed under a baggy jacket, my sword slotted into the pack itself. I had made other adjustments to the device beyond that, focused on making it more practical. I had replaced the bag I used to carry around completely, so I had started wearing it everywhere.

"This restaurant looks nice." Oran said, as we passed a bustling noodle shop.

"Eh, not really my kinda food." Russell said, adding glancing over at it.

"We ate before we left," Nikki pointed out. "Why are you guys only paying attention to food?"

"That's no reason not to." Russell said, flashing her a smile and a wink. He had been ignoring me for the entire week, only talking to me when he talked to the entire group.

She shook her head, glowering at him. "I want to smack you sometimes." She grumbled.

Screams pierced the air, followed by the sound of gunfire. We exchanged looks, expressions deadly serious, the lighthearted banter gone like ashes scattered to the wind. "Gadiel, scout above and ahead, provide us covering fire if needed." Oran said, taking charge in an instant. "We'll find out what's going on, and deal with it. Don't let any civilians get hurt!"

I shrugged off my jacket, and jumped upwards, sending electrical impulses to the jetpack. I rose into the air, setting down atop a nearby roof. I used my pack to leap from roof to roof, following the sounds of gunfire. I could see the others following on the ground.

I stopped on the roof of a large warehouse. We were near the docks, the water stretching out over the horizon to the west. Down below there was what looked to be thirty people engaged in a shootout with the police. I hurriedly called up Oran on my scroll.

"What's going on?" He asked, a crackle of static accompanying his words.

"Looks to be thirty or so men, heavily armed, engaged with police officers." I said.

"Alright, wait to go in until you see me." He ordered. I closed the scroll, pulling my sword from its place on my back, the flow of electricity calming my nerves with its consistent patterns. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a flash of light. Further inspection showed a rocket locker, hurtling down nearby. Oran must have called in his hammer.

Oran, Russell, and Nikki rounded the corner.. Several of the men saw them, and raised their weapons. In that moment, I leapt. I fell down above one of the men, my sword shearing all the way through his rifle. I fired my pack at the last second, slowing my fall to the point where I could land safely. The shooting stopped. I found myself surrounded, twenty guns pointed at me from all angles.

One of the men stepped forward. He didn't have a gun, but in his hands was a sabre, silver inscriptions spiraling across the curved blade. He wore a white dress shirt and khaki pants, quite out of place among the darkly dressed men with guns. "Well, what do we have here but an annoying rat." He said, gazing at me with yellow eyes.

I said nothing, but readied my sword, tip leveled at him. He did the same, crossing blades. "En Garde!" He yelled, thrusting his sword forward. It was as though my surroundings phased out. I was only vaguely aware of the battle commencing around us, for all that existed were him and I.

I blocked the strike, spinning my blade in a circle to knock his aside. I took a downward swipe, sending my blade down towards his shoulder. I didn't even see his blade move. One moment his sword was out of position from my parry, then it was blocking my strike, then I felt a sharp pain in my side. I held steady, but inhaled sharply. "You're good, I'll give you that." The man hissed. "But none are better than I!" Once again his movement was instant. His blade slammed into me, my aura taking the hit. I staggered, and in that moment Oran's voice cut through the fog of war.

"You two, help Gadiel! I've got the rest!"

It was as if my movements had sped up. His stance gave away where he would strike, and the instant before he moved my sword was there. There was the clang of metal on metal and I pushed past his blade, my sword connecting directly on the man's head. He was thrown to the side. I locked eyes with Russell. He took a deep breath in, and my motions were back to normal. Nikki's hand was to his back. A breath in, and the speed returned. I charged at the man, but he vanished, reappearing several feet away. "You rat!" He yelled. "I won't lose to you!" In an instant he was gone, just as my sword reached him.

* * *

There was a tap on my shoulder. "Hey, Gadiel." I heard Russell say from behind me.

"Yeah?" I asked, turning from my book to face him. He was looking down at his feet, not meeting my eyes. He had remained silent the whole way back from the city. He hadn't even spoke when we were giving a report to the police after the battle.

"I'm sorry that I snapped at you. After that fight, I realized something. I've been being a real dick, haven't I?" He said.

I sighed. "Kind of.

"After that fight, I expected you to be mad that you had lost, but you just looked so damn neutral. I realized that I misjudged you. You say you're not all that amazing, and I still don't believe that. Anyone else would have lost in seconds against that guy. But I respect the fact that you think that. Just promise me that you'll never give up" He said.

He met my gaze, and I believed his words. He had this look of intense determination that seemed to pass right through me. It was a strange feeling. "I will never stop trying." I said. His gaze softened and he moved to turn away. It was then that a thought struck me. "I don't think you ever told me what your semblance was." I said.

I saw Oran frowning, sat on his bed. "You haven't told me either, come to think of it." He said. "Feel like sharing?"

Russell shifted his gaze between the two of us in turn. "I can control momentum. If I focus I can stop an attack in the air, or speed up myself or an ally."

Nikki glanced up at him. "You told me that you weren't planning to tell anyone." Her eyebrows were raised.

"We're a team, aren't we? We have to trust in eachother." He said.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello again everyone! I hope your week is going well. It got to the point where google docs was taking too long to load the 34 pages of story so this is the first chapter of the second document. No significant story meaning, but just a random fac** t.

 **EDIT: Forgot some edits when removing a paragraph**

Laurel brought up her spear in time to block my strike, retaliating with a swift thrust. I couldn't bring my sword back in time so I used my right hand to push it aside, hopping back in a bid to regain my footing. We circled around each other for a few seconds, and I rushed forward right as she began a step. I rained down blows, alternating left and right, one especially strong strike knocking her spear out of her hands.

I lowered my sword. "You've been practicing a lot, haven't you?" I asked.

"Is it that obvious?" She said, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

I nodded. "Last week you never followed up a block with an attack without any hesitation like you did today."

I sat down on the ground. She took a seat next to me, naught but half a foot away. "Yeah, I have." She said. "I figured you would be impressed."

"Well, you've succeeded. For one week you improved a lot." I said.

She gave this radiant smile, visibly blushing. "Glad to hear it." She said. "I had something I wanted to ask you."

"Go ahead." I spoke without hesitation.

"What do you think about when you're fighting?" She asked.

I thought for a second. "When I'm fighting, it's like I have perfect clarity. I don't think about much of anything, really."

"It's normally like that for me." She said. "But recently I've found myself thinking about someone."

I kept silent. If she didn't want to tell me, I wouldn't ask. "i don't know what to say." I said, after a minute of silence. Our eyes met, and remained. I had this odd feeling of warmth, my heart beating faster than normal.

Laurelstood up abruptly. "See you next week." She said. She walked out, and I was left to sort out just what it was that I was feeling.

* * *

I pushed open the door of the dorm room to see all three faces turned towards me. "So how'd it go?" Nikki asked, obviously trying her best to suppress a smirk.

"Good." I said, carefully watching their reactions. Oran kept his expression neutral. Nikki was trying her best. Russell, on the other hand, had the biggest shit-eating grin I had ever seen.

"So your date went well?" He asked.

My cheeks burned. "It wasn't a date." I grumbled, moving over to my bed.

"You really don't know your own feelings well, do you?" Nikki said with a sigh.

I whipped around. "Don't you start that as well!" I said, exasperation rising by the second.

"It's sooooo obvious." Russell said, laughing at my indignation. "In all seriousness, you should try being more introspective. Sort out your thoughts, ya know?"

I said nothing, but sat down on my bed, thinking. What they said explained quite a lot, most everything actually. Laurel's odd mannerisms around me, my own reactions, it all added up under that one idea. I just wished I had figured it out myself.

* * *

I wracked my brain, trying to think of a new project to work on, and not of my sparring session with Laurel. The jetpack was completed, and now I needed another project to occupy my mind. I checked the time. Thirty minutes until I should leave to meet Laurel. There was nothing to prepare but myself. What was I going to say? Should I tell her what I felt? I shook my head. I wasn't going to get anywhere by worrying about it.

Twenty minutes. I looked up from my desk, away from the scattered sketches and blueprints. Still no ideas. Nikki was messing around with something on her scroll. Oran was out, probably going for a run as he tended to do. Russell was reading some comic book. He should probably be studying, we did have a test coming up in our grimm studies class.

Ten minutes. I tried to calm my nerves, quell my anxiety, but to no avail. I just watched the clock tick up to the time I needed. The entire week had been like this, my anticipation driving me to nervousness.

Five minutes. Four, three, two, then one. The clock struck six fifty five, and I stood up, slinging my pack on. "See you guys later." I said, eliciting a smirk from Russell and a nod from Nikki. I set off across the campus, the night air warm. It took approximately five minutes to walk from the dorms to the sparring room.

I pushed open the double doors, walking down the steps to the ring. She stood in the middle, spear at the ready. "Good to see you!" She called out.

I swallowed, finding my mouth dry. "Good to see you too." I said.

We stood there, each looking at the other. "Should we begin? I asked, My heart racing.

She nodded. I readied my sword, and launched the first attack, a downward slash. She easily blocked, the same spinning guard she had used in class. I hopped backwards, narrowly avoiding the but of the spear as it passed through the spot where my left leg had been.

I began a flurry of blows, forcing her to block, not leaving an opening for her to attack. She backpedaled in the face of the assault, but I pressed forward, unrelenting. My anxiety had vanished, I noted in the back of my mind. In that moment she found a gap in my offense, and I took a stab to the gut. I inhaled sharply, even as I blocked the next attack. She took the offensive, long flowing strikes, coming from shifting angles. I blocked all of them, but was hard pressed. She swung the spear like a staff, using sweeping strikes that I had to deflect instead of block due to their momentum. She took a swing at my legs, the staff sliding up my blade as I blocked, A flick upwards and I had broken through her guard, landing a swift strike to her side. She didn't even flinch, sending another attack at my legs. She moved with incredible grace. The thought passed through my mind, causing me to hesitate. I was too slow to block it, and the spear struck my legs, knocking me to the ground. As I fell I lashed out with my right hand, grabbing a hold of the spear behind the tip. She lost her balance, falling right on top of me. The sudden weight knocked the breath out of me, and I lay there, gasping for air.

"Are you gonna get off?" I asked, once I had recovered. I bent my head up to see her face no more than half a foot away, her eyes, green as emeralds, locked with mine.

"I think I'll lay here for a bit." She said. "What happened there? It seemed like you paused for half a second."

I was silent for a few seconds. "I thought of you." I said, simply. Her smile was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I reached up, moving a strand of hair away from her eyes. She leaned in closer. Our lips met. I was mildly panicking, I had never actually kissed a girl before.

She pulled away after several seconds. "It's getting late." She said, pushing herself up and off of me. "See you next week then."

I stood up as well. "Why don't we go for lunch on Saturday, actually? There's a noodle place I saw that looks good" I asked, unsure how I was remaining this calm.

"Sounds like a date." She said with a smile. "Send me the address, and I'll see you there."

* * *

I walked into the room, the three of them all waiting for me, as I had guessed they would. "So when are you two finally gonna be a thing?" Russell asked, over eagerly.

I frowned. "None of your business, but approximately 7 minutes ago."

"Damn it!" Russell swore.

At the same time Nikki shouted "Called it! Hand it over." Russell hung his head, handing Nikki a handful of Lien.

"Wait, you guys bet on that?" I asked. "Jerks."

"It was his idea." Nikki said with a smile, counting her winnings.

Oran Shook his head. "I tried to talk him out of it. Nikki's been taking notes on the two of you, he was never going to win."

I was dumbfounded. "I… I don't even know what to say to that. Let's start with could you not?" I said, glaring at Nikki.

"Hey, Laurel asked for my help. She wasn't sure how to approach you. You come off as intimidating, what with the fancy tech and your combat skill." She said. "I was just trying to help."

I regained my composure. "Well, thanks, I guess. Still, is note taking really necessary?" I asked.

"Oh not at all." She said without a hint of hesitation.

I shook my head. "I can't believe you." I grumbled, moving over to my desk. I sat down, picking up the pencil once more. I got to work, sketching the rough shape of a spear on the blue paper.


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello again everyone! Nothing to say today, here's the chapter.**

"Hey, you guys might want to see this." Oran called out. He was holding a newspaper, and he looked rather concerned.

I walked over, soon joined by Russell and Nikki. I saw the headline, then the picture, and my fists clenched. Staring back at me from the front page of the paper was the man I had fought. "Looks like they call themselves the Zealous. The guy we fought goes by Rogziel. They suspect that isn't his real name though." Oran said. "They've been targeting dust and tech shipments for the most part."

"So what?" Russell said. "It's not like we're going to do anything about it, that's a job for police or fully trained huntsmen."

Nikki frowned. "That doesn't mean we shouldn't be concerned. We were already involved in a fight with them, there's a chance it could happen again."

"That's correct." Oran replied. "There's also no mention in the article of his abilities. We know that he can move seemingly instantly, and we told the police that. If they know how he does it, they likely don't want him to know that they know."

"So what do we do?" I asked.

Oran glanced up at me. "For now, nothing. However, once the semester ends, I think we should try and investigate."

"So we are going to do something about it then?" Russell asked, raising his eyebrows.

Oran grinned at him. "Not just us." He said. "Team LILC is going to be helping out."

Russell flashed me a smile. "Well, we already have some members helping each other out, if you know what I mean." He said.

I had to take a deep breath to prevent myself from slapping him.

Nikki glared at Russell. "Oh, grow up."

"Hey, you're no saint either, Ms. Takes notes on my friends relationship." Russell said.

"Oh, stop it! I was trying to help!"

"You certainly helped yourself to my money!"

I stopped listening, tuning out their squabble. "So how are things going?" Oran asked. "It seems like you've been on the distracted side lately."

"I'm doing pretty good." I said. "I have had some stuff on my mind though."

"Such as her?" Oran prompted.

I nodded. "Definitely. It seems like now that I've figured out how I feel it's gotten so much stronger."

Oran glanced over to Russell and Nikki, their argument still ongoing, then back to me. "I've always found that true with every emotion. Once you've recognized it, your brain reacts the way you think it should."

"I'm going out to lunch with her tomorrow." I said. I hadn't mentioned that yet, and now seemed as good a time as any.

Oran gave me a thumbs up. "Glad to hear it. She's quite the catch." He said.

I shook my head. "I don't believe for a second that I'm the one who caught her. It's quite the opposite really."

"It may well be true." Oran said. "But you're lucky either way."

* * *

We sat at one of the tables outside the restaurant, sitting across from each other. A glance around showed the restaurant to be packed with couples, similar to us.

"It sure is a popular spot." Laurel said.

"Yeah." I said. "It makes me feel self conscious, knowing that we're just another couple crowding the place."

"Oh, come on." She said with a smile. "We're students at Beacon and easily the top fighters in our year at that. We're more than just another couple."

I smiled back at her. "I suppose you're right."

"So what do you like to do outside of class?" She asked, after a few seconds pause. "We've barely had any chances to talk outside of sparring."

"I spend a lot of time building things, like the jetpack or my sword." I said.

Her eyes widened. "I hadn't realized you made those yourself, did you have any help with them?"

"Nope. Both were completely my design and I built them." I said. "What's your pastime?"

"I really like to draw and design things. If I weren't going to be a huntress I would try and become an architect." She said.

"I'm not great at drawing, but I have to do some for my blueprints." I said. "I'd like to see some of your work if you're willing to share."

"I'll show you when we get back to Beacon." She said.

The waiter arrived with our food, a man not much older than us. "Alright, one noodle bowl for you," He said, placing the bowl down in front of me. "And a vegetable soup for you." He placed the other down in front of Laurel.

"Thank you." She said, glancing up at the waiter.

"Just doing my job. Hope you two lovebirds enjoy your meal." He said with a slight laugh as he walked away. I blushed profusely, eliciting a snicker from Laurel.

"You better get used to that sort of thing." She said. I didn't respond, using my food as a cover to not answer. She began to eat as well, and we were silent for some minutes.

"So," I said between bites, "Nikki told me that you asked her for help on how to approach me."

She looked a bit panicked . "I'm so sorry about that!"

"I'm not angry." I said quickly. "Just curious."

She seemed to relax some. "Ever since that first fight we had, on the first combat class, something about you just seemed to demand my attention. Normally I can tell quite a lot about people from how they act, but not you. It was like you were completely different on the battlefield and off, so I asked for help from someone who knew you better."

"Am I really that different when I'm fighting and when I'm not?" I asked.

"No." She answered, after a few seconds. "It took some time, but I think I've got you figured out.."

I raised an eyebrow. "Do you really?"

She gave me a smile, her green eyes staring into my blue. "I know that I have fallen for you. And I believe that you, Gadiel Silvers, have fallen for me."

"Well, you've got me there." I said, smiling back at her. She hadn't really answered the question, but I didn't bother to pursue it. Her answer was all I could have ever wanted.

"I was wondering," I said. "Where did you get your spear?" I had just remembered to ask this, if the spear was important to her then it would be rude to make her a new one. I had already lost sleep over the design, best to ensure it wasn't for nothing.

She patted the pipe shaped object at her side that was the collapsed spear. "I've had this for years, it was a gift from my parents when I was accepted to Signal. It's not in the greatest shape at this point. I'll have to replace it eventually, I think."

Seemed like it would be fine, I thought to myself. I wasn't sure if I should mention it now or keep it a secret, making my best option that of silence.

I found myself staring once more into her eyes, and my heart skipped a beat. In that moment, I was the most content I had been since I started on the path of a huntsman.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello again everyone. Today's not been the greatest day, for reasons that may be obvious if you are either American or have any clue about world happenings. I use my writing to escape, and this is something I need to distract myself from, therefore I'm going to be putting out chapters more frequently for a bit.**

He showed up unannounced. It was the second to last day of classes before the semester gap, and I found myself sitting at my desk, not really reading the notes before me. I heard the knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Russell said, and I heard the scrape of a chair from behind me.

The door creaked. "Who's- who are you?" Russell asked.

I recognized the voice before he finished his first word. "The name's Slade, is Gadiel here?"

I jumped up, rushing over to the door. There he was, looking just as I had remembered. "There you are!" He said. "It's good to see you, kid. Do you all mind if I come in?"

"It's good to see you too." I said with a grin, beaconing him inside.

"So who exactly are you?" Russell asked. "Because all I know is your name."

Slade smiled warmly. "I'm the one who trained Gadiel to fight. I was in the area so I figured I should visit." Oran and Nikki seemed to gain interest right around then, and they took up position next to me.

"Well, you certainly did a fine job." Oran said. "Gadiel is the best fighter in our year by quite the margin."

"Not that he's willing to acknowledge that." Russell added. I shot him a look, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.

"So you must be his teammates! Looks like he's lucky to have you guys watching his back, then. I was also quite the prodigal swordsman in my time, but I couldn't have gotten nearly half as far without the support of my team."

"It feels like the other way around, that we're lucky to have him." Nikki said, glancing at me. "Every time we're in a team battle it seems he ends up pulling so much weight that no one else needs to lift a finger."

Slade's expression darkened momentarily. "Trust me. That will change in time. You'll eventually have to rely on eachother, no matter how skilled each of you are individually." He glanced over at me. "Gadiel, I have some stuff I want to talk about with you, alone."

I looked around at my team. Oran silently gestured to the door, his expression calm. Nikki had her eyebrows raised, and bit her lip. Russell just shrugged. "Sure." I said, at length. Slade began to leave, and I followed, glancing back at my team once more before stepping out.

"Let's walk." Slade said, and he began to leave.

I sighed, and began to follow. "What's all this about, you're never this secretive about anything.' I asked. "You normally can't wait to talk about things that are going on."

Slade stopped short, standing in the middle of the hallway. "I can't stand this place." He said. "They all told me that I should have stayed, that my gift was best used to train new huntsmen. They couldn't comprehend the promise I made to my dad." He leaned against the wall, hands on his face.

I was supremely confused. "I don't understand. What gift? What promise?"

"My semblance." His voice was hollow, I had never seen him quite like this. "Whoever I teach will absorb knowledge at a much faster rate than they would normally, almost three times as fast, according to Ozpin. That's why you're so far above, it's as if you had been training for nine years, not three."

I felt numb. This explained so much- I knew I couldn't be so far above the others with only three years experience. "So what's this promise then, why don't you teach more?" I asked.

Slade still had his head in his hands. "When I first went away to beacon, I made my dad a promise. Miles west of town, are the ruins of the old city. My dad grew up there, and he made me promise that once I was a true huntsman I would go there, and make it safe once more so that he could return to the home of his youth. I could never stay here in the city, or in Beacon."

It was a shock to see my mentor so distraught. I spoke gently. "Did you ever go to the ruins?"

"No." Was all he said.

"Hey Gadiel! Are- oh, sorry, is this a bad time?" Laurel had rounded the corner, stopping short when she saw Slade.

"It's always a good time, if you can pardon this old man's ramblings." Slade said, giving an exaggerated bow, then looked over to me. "Why don't you introduce us?" All traces of his sadness were seemingly gone.

"Laurel, this is Slade, he's the one who taught me to fight. He's not as old has he looks, so don't fall for his rhetoric about treating him with respect." This earned me a glare from Slade, and I had to struggle to keep myself from laughing. It was amazing how quickly the atmosphere went from depressing to jolly around Slade, this was not an isolated occurrence. "Slade, this is Laurel, my-"

Laurel cut me off. "I'm his girlfriend." I felt myself blush.

Slade's eyes gleamed, a grin creeping across his face. "You didn't tell me you found yourself a girl, kid." He said, then addressed Laurel. "Well, Laurel, you certainly have good taste in men, Gadiel here is something special."

She smiled. "I most definitely agree. You certainly trained him well, we sparred for almost a month before I was able to get him on the ground and had a chance to kiss him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Didn't I trip you and you fell on me?" I asked.

Her smile widened. "I was planning to tackle you, you just made my job easier."

"You two seem like quite the couple." Slade said. "It's a good thing you were willing to make the first move, he can be quite timid."

"I'm standing right here you know. I assume you were looking for a reason, Laurel, what's up?" I asked.

"I was hoping we could hang out for a bit, but if you're busy then that's fine." She said.

Slade shook his head. "Don't let me stop you, I need to get on my way anyways. Take care, try not to get into too much trouble, you two." He said, beginning to walk out, glancing back at me as he did. "You'll go far, kid. I know you will."

Laurel watched him leave. "He seems nice." She said. "Must be very skilled if he taught you."

I watched as he turned the corner, disappearing from sight. "I've never met anyone better."


End file.
